Motivation not an issue for 21-year-old college student, business owner

TROY -- At 21 years old, Scott Morrissey has done more while being a student at Clarkson University than those who are five years out of college.

After returning from a week-long stay in Florida for his baseball team at school, Morrissey visited a business attorney to establish Morrissey Contracting LLC, a company he would own and operate to do home renovations or other construction work.

Currently in his senior year at Clarkson in the Business Innovation and Entrepreneur Program, Morrissey has been managing time between attending classes and playing baseball for Clarkson, and fielding calls for his construction company. It will be work he plans on starting in the summer with two of his friends from high school who he said are his employees.

"I'll get a lot of calls and I am constantly putting together estimates, just trying to get stuff set up for the summer," Morrissey said. "I'm booked for the first two months of the summer. It's definitely exciting."

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When his family began building a new home in Troy when he was younger, Morrissey's grandmother would drive him over so he could watch the contractor do work on the house. He continued to follow the developer as he did work on other houses in his neighborhood.

Morrissey then asked his father, Joe Morrissey, if he could do work on the home; he was allowed to do some of the tiling. At around 15 to 16 years old, he remodeled the basement. Morrissey said he learned literally just by doing.

"Most people would think the parents are crazy to let their 15 year old go crazy with a hammer in a brand new home," Morrissey said. "But the better I got, the more they tapped into it. Now there are begging me to do stuff."

It also helped that he got a lot of support from his professors who gave him tips on how to start a company, with one convincing him to hire a business attorney as he said it would be someone he wants in his corner down the road.

What has informed Morrissey's work ethic, though, was his love for the sport of baseball. He gave a lot of thanks for his coaches from his high school team at La Salle, as well as his coaches in the Troy Dodgers and at Clarkson.

"Playing a sport all the way up help me develop a work ethic and dedication," Morrissey said. "Those are qualities I have to echo in my business if I want to be successful."

One of his former coaches, Parks and Recreations Director George Rogers, said Morrissey was one of the kids who received a $500 scholarship through funds raised from the Twilight League, and said he always demonstrated his exemplary work ethic and dedication.

"It's about time kids like him get recognized for not only what he does on the baseball field and in the classroom," Rogers said. "It's nice to know he's being recognized for being a good citizen."

After graduation, he said he plans to dedicate his time to both his work and baseball, adding he plans to play in the Twilight League in Troy. He also plans to give back to not only just the baseball league but also the community as a whole, as Morrissey has no plans of leaving the city any time soon.

He said him and his brother have had discussions about getting involved in real estate once his business becomes successful so they could start renovating homes in the city and either selling them or renting them out.

"There's a lot of rebuilding going on in Troy," Morrissey said. "I am definitely excited to be a part of that."